Biography

15 May 1938, Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA. Treading the same path as Johnny Mathis, Welch built his career singing pop tunes with a hint of R&B flavour and a succinct sweetness in the voice. He began singing professionally in 1958, and signed with Archie Bleyers Cadence label in 1960. His record was a remake of an old Jerry Vale hit, You Dont Know Me and it went to number 45 on the pop chart in 1960, shaping the course of his career. In 1963 Welchs remake of the 40s-era big band standard, Since I Fell For You turned out to be his biggest hit (US pop number 4). He followed with another revival of a standard, Ebb Tide (US pop Top 30 and R&B Top 10 in 1964). The b-side, Congratulations Baby,  was a splendid doo-wop song and revealed his R&B origins. Welch signed with Kapp Records in 1965 where his musical direction was increasingly directed towards the MOR style, notably with Two...